117 entries categorized "Tips and Tricks"

July 23, 2014

It's time for a QP virtual user group meeting! This is your chance to hear from the QP product team about the enhancements we've done so far this year, as well as what we're planning next. We'll also share the results of the QuestionPoint user survey (conducted in Jan-Feb 2014). Our update should take about 30 minutes. The remaining hour will be yours to ask questions and discuss any topics of interest to you.

Registration instructions:

Please choose one of the following sessions. (Times are shown for both the Eastern time zone in the U.S. and GMT time for international participants.) Registration is required so we can distribute the necessary log-in/call-in information to you. Note that you will be required to enter a password to enter the meeting, and this password will be included in your registration email. The password is case sensitive. Please be sure that messages from messenger@webex.com are allowed through to you so your confirmation and log-in information is not caught in a spam blocker. When registering, please provide your name and email address; the other requested information is not required.

June 18, 2014

When assisting students with their research, pointing to the library’s databases and recommending search terms isn’t always the best place to start, especially if the search results are too specific for the student’s needs. In this session, the librarian works with the student to determine the effectiveness of a database search, suggesting more general resources (encyclopedias, etc). The student was delighted and commented (in the post-session survey): “The person I talked to was extremely helpful! I figured they would just give me advice, but this person actually helped me research! Definitely above and beyond what I expected."

The complete session (anonymized) is below:

Patron: Hello. I'm trying to find a relevant article about a specific organism for my Microbiology paper that isn't as in depth as an analysis of its makeup. Do you have any suggestions to narrow down the results? Thanks in advance!

Librarian: Hello! Just a moment while I look at your question.

Librarian: I'm looking at a list of databases accessible to [name of patron’s library], and I'm wondering which one's you've already tried ...?

Patron: I'm currently on EBSCOHost; I haven't used any of the other databases before.

Librarian: EBSCO is a vendor of databases, not a database, were you in Academic Search Premier by chance?

Librarian: I'm think that overviews might be more useful for you than journal articles, which focus on narrow aspects of topics - can you use online reference works, for example?

Patron: Yep! Sorry, I normally don't use these, but I've been having trouble finding information on this organism in general, including a general websearch. I didn't notice the top of the screen said Academic Search Premier.

Librarian: the Oxford Reference online sounds like it might offer subject encyclopedias that would give you an overview of microorganisms

Librarian: what is your specific genus and species name?

Patron: In response to the second question, yes, my professor just asked us to use credible sources, so I thought searching on be would be a good idea, but they're a tad more in-depth than I need.

Patron: Okay, thank you! My organism is Micrococcus luteus.

Librarian: ok, hang on ...

Librarian: The Oxford entries were not specific to that organism, except a couple of brief references

Librarian: I notice you have access to Scientific American online; their articles tend to be comprehensible to educated readers without advanced degrees, you could try that next (keyword searching by genus and species)

Patron: I checked as well and the only results I found were the genus, not the species (which I can use as well) but they require a paid membership.

Librarian: they shouldn't require a paid membership if you start at your library's database page: http://www.library.edu/databases

Librarian: you should be able to get into any database there with your ID and PIN, as explained on this page: http://library.edu/PINs

Librarian: I might try ProQuest next, although many of their articles are also highly technical - some are not

Patron: Oh, okay, thank you! I wasn't aware of that.

Librarian: hang on, still looking ...

Librarian: I tried ProQuest, and found over 20 articles with m. luteus as a "subject" (better than searching keywords) but all were rather narrow focus research articles

Librarian: is there a common name for the micro-organism, or something that makes it interesting to laypeople?

Librarian: Wikipedia doesn't seem to think so ... (you can't use them as a source, of course)

Patron: I'm searching through Scientific American and haven't found anything so far. Unfortunately, no really. It's a pretty common microbe, as in it's always on our skin, and doesn't do much unless the person is immuncompromised. The most interesting fact I've found is that is causes the odor in stinky feet.

Librarian: that is interesting, I'm thinking general science magazines (like New Scientist, Discover, or Science News) might mention it in relation to recent discoveries

Librarian: to find those, I'd normally use the big aggregrate databases like Academic Search Premier or ProQuest, but you could try other all-topic databases in the library’s database list

Librarian: perhaps the health-related databases

Patron: Okay, I'll start searching some of those then. Thank you! The only website I could come up with was the CDC and they didn't have much unfortunately. I was just at a loss of where to look.

Librarian: in EBSCO you can do a combined database search, and that it improves your chances with obscure topics; look for the "choose databases" link after the database name (top left) of the advanced search screen

Librarian: you'll probably have to wade through a bunch of highly technical citations and abstracts until you can find one that is more general and comprehensible. For general overviews of scientific topics, I usually recommend science (or biology in this case) encyclopedias, which are often in print in the library

Librarian: they're considered credible, if not quite peer-reviewed

Librarian: with this topic, all I'm finding tonight are highly technical research articles that won't give an overview

Librarian: wait, you have Grzimek's online, that might help

Patron: I think my professor was mainly hinting that she would not be impressed if we used Wikipedia as a source. She didn't seem overly concerned with where it came from, as long as the facts were right. I noticed, the combined databases pulled up over 4,000 results. I never would have thought of a biology encyclopedia, that's a great idea! That was my problem with Academic Search Premier. My target audience is supposed to be someone who has never taken Microbiology, so I have to simplify everything I come across.

Librarian: that explains some things (virtually no instructors like Wikipedia as a source, incidentally)

Librarian: The Grzimek's didn't work because a bacterium isn't an animal

Librarian: you might also try textbooks (but probably not the one used in your class)

Librarian: they tend to simplify and generalize a bit

Patron: I can see why, I've gotten some bad (or just incomplete) information from Wikipedia before, but it's occasionally nice for a brief overview. I tried my class textbook, but like you said, it was too generalized for my purpose. Very true, thank you for all of your help!

Librarian: You’re welcome. I hope the session was helpful and that you'll use this service again soon! If you provided an email, you will receive a transcript of this session shortly. You may also see a link to a survey, which you may use to rate this service. Thanks!

Librarian coded session for Follow Up

If you have a session to recommend a session for Session of the Week, or if you have any comments/concerns about any chat sessions, send it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email eitherqpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org]. Thanks to all who have submitted a SOTW!

June 03, 2014

Although there are many sites with suggestions on what to read next, it can be tricky for patrons to locate a fondly remembered book when, alas, they don’t remember the author or the title. In this session, the patron can remember the cover of the book and some key plot points, and the reference librarian uses this, along with information gleaned in the reference interview, to find that book:

Patron: I'm looking for a book that I read about 4 or 5 years ago. I don't remember the title or the author, but I remember that there was a girl on the cover who had on like a simple, dark dress and dark, black hair. I also remember that she was about 16, she was living with her great aunt and uncle because her parents had died...I feel like in some sort of hiking accident. It was during the summer and she ended up getting a job at a bakery. I would greatly appreciate your help in finding this book. Thank you!

Librarian: Hello, I'm reading your question and will be with you in just a moment.

Librarian: Unfortunately we can't search by cover art or color, so let's focus on what you remember about the story.

Librarian: Did you get the book from your library? Was it a book for kids, teens or adults?

Patron: I got it from my school library, it was for teens. I'm pretty sure.

Librarian: Here is a likely description: When sixteen-year-old Martha Venable Sexton gets a summer job at a bakery, her whole life changes as she finds friends, discovers men, learns to balance individuality with "blending in," and comes to terms with her guardian aunt and uncle.

Librarian: The title is "M.V. Sexton speaking " and the author is Suzanne Newton

Patron: I think that's it!!!

Librarian: Good! Glad to help.

Librarian: Do you want to check if your public library has it, or are you going to look at school library now?

Patron: Thank you so much! I would like to check if my public library has it.

Librarian: I just checked and did not find it. It is published in 1981, so it might not have survived 33 years in a public library.

Librarian: If your school library doesn't still have it, look into Interlibrary Loan at your public library.

[Librarian sends link to ILL for patron’s public library']

Patron: Okay, thank you so much. I've been looking for this book for ages it feels like.

Librarian: You're very welcome.

Librarian: Bye! It's been a pleasure serving you. If you need further help, please feel free to login again. If you have provided a valid e-mail address, you will receive a transcript of this chat session in your e-mail. Please take a moment to complete the survey!

The patron commented, via the survey: “I had been looking for a book that I couldn't remember the title or author of. Needless to say, I wasn't having much luck finding the book. All I could remember was what the book was about, but just plugging that into search engines wasn't working. I found this and figured it was worth a shot and within a few questions, my book was found! I was elated. This is an amazing tool."

Congratulations to the librarian who, using reference interview techniques and the patron’s library’s readers’ advisory database, was able to locate the book (and sent the ILL form so the patron could read the book once more).

If you would like to nominate a session, send it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email either qpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org]. Thanks to all who have submitted a SOTW!

May 30, 2014

On May 18 we introduced WYSIWYG formatting to the answer screen in the QuestionPoint Ask module. However, two issues quickly surfaced:

(1) when composing a message in the Answer screen, the WYSIWYG editor creates a paragraph break (basically a double space) rather than a line break (basically, a single space) when you use the carriage return, and

(2) for scripted messages where spacing is used to create line breaks (without using HTML tags), the line break is not recognized. This means that a signature that looks fine in your scripted messages now looks like this when inserted into the Answer screen:

Steve Smith 24/7 Library Anywhere USA

We are working on fixing these two issues in the code (the install is planned tentatively for 2 AM ET on June 12).

After the install (stay tuned for confirmation of the date and time):

A single carriage return will create a single space, not a double space, and

For the scripted messages, we are altering the WYSIWYG editor to treat existing carriage returns from imported scripts as a line break. In the meantime, if you would like formatting in your scripted messages, you can edit your scripts to use HTML coding, as follows:

Steve Smith<br>24/7 Library<br>Anywhere USA<br>

Note: If you leave the existing carriage return in and add the <br> HTML code, you will have double-spacing because the fix will retroactively correct the line breaks.

We’ll have further details once we the install date and time is set, but feel free to post any tips that you have used to improve the WYSIWYG experience to the blog.

May 13, 2014

This session provides a great illustration of how you can help Coop librarians troubleshoot access issues - just provide database access in your library policy page, as the library in the session below did. This patron was trying, unsuccessfully, to access Net Tutor, a program available at her school through Blackboard. Thanks to the combination of a clever Coop librarian and a good library policy page, this patron got the help she needed. In the post-session survey, the patron said “Great librarian.exceptional service and very patient too. Walked me through the entire process. Thank you so much.”

Here’s the complete session:

Patron: How can i access net tutor

Librarian: Hi [patron’s name removed].Welcome to [name of patron library]. I'm reading over your question and will be with you in just a moment.

Librarian: Can you tell me more about what net tutor is?

Patron: Net tutor is associated with colleges and helps with home work and also classwork. It is like a distant learning.

Librarian: Thanks, I am looking at your library's page now

Librarian: It looks like you need to be logged into Blackboard...are you?

Patron: Ok thank you. Yes i am logged into blackboard

Librarian: I am reading that you need to click "Tools" and should then be able to select "Net Tutor"

Librarian: I am trying to follow in your footsteps and am not finding the "tools" feature

Librarian: let me keep looking

Librarian: Okay, I found it

Patron: ok. I went to tools and after clicking the net tutor icon, it said "this page will load net tutor but when i click ok, it goes back to the home page

Librarian: uh oh, okay, let me try it too

Patron: thank you

Librarian: I get a message that says "this page will lauch the net tutor" but when I click, "okay" it just goes back to the previous screen. Is that the case for you too?

Patron: yes it is

Librarian: Do you see any additional log in information?

Patron: No. there are no other options

Librarian: okay, that must be frustrating. Let me do a little more searching and see if there is something we are missing

Patron: ok. thank you

Librarian: I don't know if this is it, but I am reading that you first need to log into blackboard and then go to your class, and then click on tools before selecting Net tutor.

Librarian: Is that what you already did?

Librarian: I don't know if it will make a difference....I'll keep looking

Patron: yes. i logged into blackboard then selected English 101, went to tools and then select net tutor

Librarian: Okay, I was able to get in...

Patron: great.

Librarian: It might be that the page, once you click on that "ok" is being blocked by a popup blocker

Librarian: go back to the tools page and click on the net tutor

Librarian: when you click on "ok" you will see a red or yellow x in the browser's search box on the far right hand side (just below the x where you can close your browser)

Patron: ok. my computer is a little slow but i am trying to get back in

Librarian: you have to allow the pop up’s, then it will take you back to that tools page, and you can click on it again, select okay, and it should pop up in a new window

Librarian: okay, let me know if that works

Patron: ok. please don't go yet, i really need your help. thank you

Librarian: I won't go. I want to make sure you can access it :)

Patron: GUESS WHAT!!!!!? i am in!!!!! [librarian name removed], i do not know how to thank you. i have been trying night and day to get in for 3 days. Thanks for your help. i am eternally grateful for you patience. thank you so much.

Librarian: Oh good I am so glad I could help!

Librarian: It's funny because I didn't even see the little pop up blocker either! Just make sure you look for that x and you should get access again!

Patron: so do i do this each time i visit net tutor?

Librarian: I believe so.

Librarian: You can change your pop up blocker settings but I would just click on that little x each time and allow the pop ups as you need

Patron: Thank you a thousand time. you saved my day. thank you

Librarian: You're welcome! Is there anything else I can do to help you before I go?

Librarian: Okay, well it looks like you're already busy using the net tutor so I'll end this session now. [Librarian sends Goodbye script for Patron’s Library]

If you would like to nominate a session, send it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email eitherqpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org] and I’ll send a compliment to the chatting librarian as well. Thanks again to all who have submitted a SOTW; I’ll be posting those in the coming weeks!

May 06, 2014

This week’s session of the week was submitted by Cindy Pitchon, coordinator of Ask Here PA, the Pennsylvania statewide virtual reference service. Cindy nominated this session because the chatting librarian:

Librarian: That 1st link says: "A Study in Scarlet grew steadily in popularity, strongly assisted by the short stories which began to appear in The Strand Magazine in 1891. By 1892 seven editions or printings had been issued."

Librarian: So that is useful for your question about the book's impact.

Patron: okay

Librarian: The last link I sent is to a 32 page honors paper on Sherlock Holmes, and you can search it for the word - Scarlet - to find material about the book.

Librarian: "...a school board in Albemarle County, Virginia, removed the book from its sixth grade reading list over unsubstantiated fears that the author was anti-Mormon."

Librarian: For more material, you could use books from the library about Arthur Conan Doyle's writing.

Patron: okay thank you. You have been a big help.

Librarian: And the library has these 85 books: [librarian sends link to search results from library catalog showing Arthur Conan Doyle as the subject]

Librarian: And these 2 of literary criticism: [librarian sends link to search results narrowing the above search to literary criticism]

Librarian: Those are in the Biography section of the library, and also in the 823.912 shelf call number area.

Librarian: When our session ends you'll see a screen with our chat and any links, that can also be saved, printed or emailed.

Patron: thanks!

Librarian: You're welcome. Let us know if we can be of further assistance.

If you would like to nominate a session, send it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email either qpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org] and I’ll send a compliment to the chatting librarian as well. Thanks again to all who have submitted a SOTW; I’ll be posting those in the coming weeks!

April 29, 2014

This week’s Session of the Week was submitted by Nono Burling, the statewide coordinator of Ask WA. This chat started off as a potential prank (“do fish poop?”) and became a potential crisis call (“what are the signs of a nervous breakdown because I think I'm having one“). Nono praised the librarian for taking the patron seriously by sending an appropriate crisis line phone number and following it up with information about the situation (in this case, a link from the Mayo clinic on signs of a nervous breakdown), following the Crisis Call policy to perfection: http://wiki.questionpoint.org/w/page/13839422/247-Policies#453Suicidalpatronsandcrisiscalls. Here’s the session, with personal information removed:

Patron: do fish poop? also do fish sleep?? my fish seems like it never sleeps.

Librarian: Hello! I'm a librarian from <name of Coop library>. I help out when your librarians are busy. Just a moment while I look at your question.

Librarian: This question about sleep and fish is really interesting...because according to this article at least fish may not have eyelids...

Librarian: Okay, what do you think about me finding a local health practitioner you could talk to right now?

Patron: i think i might call that number

Librarian: I think they would be a good resource...

Librarian: Can I stay online with you until you have them on the phone?

Patron: no its okay I'm going to dial right now thank you for all of your help i really appreciate it

Librarian: The first number I gave you is a suicide hotline number. I think I could help you find another phone number for a nurse or doctor if you think that would help.

Patron ended chat session

Thanks to Nono for submitting this Session of the Week! If you would like to nominate a session, send it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email either qpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org] and I’ll send a compliment to the chatting librarian as well. Thanks again to all who have submitted a SOTW; I’ll be posting those in the coming weeks!

April 23, 2014

This week’s Session of the Week was submitted by Frank Wilmot, Denver PL. Frank praised this session because the chatting librarian used the library’s policy page to help this patron find a book that isn’t at his library. In this case, the library policy page instructs librarians to suggest the statewide union catalog (Prospector) first, which is exactly what the chatting librarian did. The patron was very pleased and said, in his post-chat survey: “9:00pm on a Sunday night and I get help from a useful librarian. Fantastic!”

Here’s the complete transcript, with personal details removed:

Patron: I'm looking for a copy of [name of book removed]. The database says that the book exists (phew!) but that there are no copies in the system. Does this make sense?

Librarian: Hi I'm [librarian’s name removed]. I am helping out your library as their staff aren't available to chat right now. I'm reading your question...

Librarian: I'm happy to help! I'll check to see what is going on. Sometimes if the last copy of a book is lost, the record stays in the system even with no copies.

Librarian: This may take a few minutes

Patron:Thank you...

Librarian: That seems to be what has happened. What you could try instead is to request it through Prospector. If you aren't familiar with that statewide request system, more info and the link is on this page

Librarian:[sends link to Prospector]

Patron: I'm familiar with Prospector. Thanks much for your help!

Librarian: No problem glad to help

Librarian: Did you need anything else tonight?

Patron: Nope, that's everything. Many thanks.

Patron ended chat session

Librarian: If you need further assistance, please feel free to contact us again. Thank you for using the service. Goodbye!

Submit your session of the week by sending it Quality [click on the Send to Quality link in the complete session view in the Review Transcripts tab, or email either qpquality@gmail.com or mcglames@oclc.org] and I’ll send a compliment to the chatting librarian as well. We have several other nominations which I will post in the coming weeks – thanks to all who have nominated a Session of the Week, and please keep the nominations coming in!

April 15, 2014

Every week I’ll post an exemplary chat session as a way to illustrate our 24/7 Reference Coop policies and best practices. This one is older (2010), but I love it because:

The librarian uses a screencast to efficiently convey information to the student on how to find fulltext articles in a database.

Reference conversation: The librarian went beyond showing the student how to find fulltext articles, asking about the topic and suggesting search strategies.

Here’s the full session transcript, anonymized:

Patron: Hello. I'm trying to use ebscohost for article research and i don't think I’m doing it right because when I type the subject in the box and hit search it doesn't really give me articles to read it just gives me brief information on the source. Do I need to be doing something else? Librarian: Hi - Give me a minute to read your question … Librarian: OK, which EBSCO database are you using? Librarian: Academic Search Complete, PSYCHINfo. EBSCO is the vendor, the databases all have names... Patron: Not sure I didn't know there was more than one Librarian: That might be the key. Librarian: So what does it say at the top left of the screen in EBSCO right now? Patron: [name of patron’s library] Librarian: what does it say next to he round blue and green EBSCO logo. To the right of that or below it? Librarian: after the word "searching" in bold print. Patron: Academic search premier Librarian: ah HA! Librarian: Excellent. That is what I suspected. OK this is good. I have Academic Search Premeir at my college and can walk you through it. Patron: k..thanks Librarian: so you type something in the search box and articles don;t come up? Patron: Sort of Librarian: give me a second. I will send you a link that shows you how OK? Librarian: meanwhile, can you tell me more about what happens when you search? Patron: I type a subject in let's say "Mikea" and things pop up but they don't seem like articles. The seem like brief descriptions. I need more reliable articles and i don't know how to get more documentation. Librarian: ok - watch this teensy video i just made and let me know if helps: http://screencast.com/t/OTU2YjM4YPatron: k Patron: Awesome that helps so much thank you! Librarian: super! So yeah, you just click on the blue link to get the article. So what kind of search is "Mikea"? Patron: It's a tribe in Madagasgar. Librarian: Are you finding any useful results with that search? Librarian: EBSCO uses this term : MIKEA (Malagasy people) Librarian: with the parentheses and everything. I found three on the Mikea but also it is a region. Patron: I didn't find so much Librarian: this article looks great: "MYSTIFICATION OF THE MIKEA: CONSTRUCTIONS OF FORAGING IDENTITY IN SOUTHWEST MADAGASCAR." by Poyer, Lin and Kelly, Robert L. Librarian: from the Journal of Anthropological Research; Summer2000, Vol. 56 Issue 2, p163 Librarian: What about the Mikea are you researching? If it is facts and history, you might be better off with an encyclopedia entry. Patron: Ya i'm ok now..thanks so much for your help. Librarian: OK Librarian: did that answer your question? Patron: yep! Librarian: excellent. Librarian: ask anytime :) Patron: ttyl Librarian: l8r Librarian ended chat session.

March 03, 2014

Early Warning Systems describe the timely provision of information regarding an emerging dangerous situation where that information can point to quick action now, to limit the damage. There are early warning systems for natural disasters (hurricanes, floods, maybe earthquakes) and potentially lethal health conditions (the early warning signs of heart disease, etc). But chat sessions from your patrons can also act as an Early Warning System for issues with your library systems.

Stephen Francoeur (Baruch College) pointed this out in his Digital Reference blog a few months ago: http://www.stephenfrancoeur.com/digitalreference/2013/11/25/digital-reference-as-early-warning-system-for-systems-issues/. A student reported a problem with the links in the library’s fulltext discovery service, using the Ask a Librarian chat service. Stephen muses that: “Problems like this don’t seem to get reported at the reference desk so much. My theory is that if a student is having a problem, they are far more likely to report it immediately than later on; the only way to reach us immediately is through our digital reference services (we also get some from the telephone at the reference desk).”

There are several ways to encourage users to report issues of this sort (special troubleshooting or problem reporting forms, for example), but the key is to review your chat transcripts. As Stephen says, “it’s clear we’ve got a really valuable source of feedback about our systems coming in via digital reference channels and we would be well advised to continue paying close attention to that feedback”. Well stated, Stephen!